Page 58 (1/2)

"Siege weapons," Frank added "Public sanitation"

"Yeah, fine," Leo said "But Archimedes was in a class by his, only nobody is sure…"

Suddenly Leo got an idea so incredible that his nose burst into flames He patted it out as quickly as possible Man, it was e when that happened

He ran to the row of cubbyholes and exaods This is it!"

He gingerly lifted out one of the scrolls He wasn’t great at Ancient Greek, but he could tell the inscription on the case read On Building Spheres

"Guys, this is the lost book!" His hands were shaking "Archi his construction methods, but all the copies were lost in ancient times If I can translate this…"

The possibilities were endless For Leo, the quest had now totally taken on a new diet the spheres and scrolls safely out of here He had to protect this stuff until he could get it back to Bunker 9 and study it

"The secrets of Archier than Daedalus’s laptop If there’s a Roman attack on Caht even give us an edge over Gaea and the giants!"

Hazel and Frank glanced at each other skeptically

"Okay," Hazel said "We didn’t couess we can take it with us"

"Assu its secrets with us stupid uncomplicated Romans"

"What?" Leo stared at him blankly "No Look, I didn’t ood news!"

For the first time in days, Leo felt really hopeful

Naturally, that’s when everything rong

On the table next to Hazel and Frank, one of the orbs clicked and whirred A row of spindly legs extended from its equator The orb stood, and two bronze cables shot out of the top, hitting Hazel and Frank like Taser wires Leo’s friends both crued to help them, but the two armored manikins that couldn’t possibly move did move They drew their swords and stepped toward Leo

The one on the left turned its crooked helmet, which was shaped like a wolf’s head Despite the fact that it had no face or mouth, a familiar hollow voice spoke from behind its visor

"You cannot escape us, Leo Valdez," it said "We do not like possessing machines, but they are better than tourists You will not leave here alive"

Chapter 39

Leo agreed with Neood luck was a sham At least when it came to Leo’s luck

Last winter he had watched in horror while a family of Cyclopes prepared to roast Jason and Piper with hot sauce He’d schemed his way out of that one and saved his friends all by himself, but at least he’d had time to think

Now, not so much Hazel and Frank had been knocked out by the tendrils of a possessed stea ball Two suits of armor with bad attitudes were about to kill him

Leo couldn’t blast them with fire Suits of armor wouldn’t be hurt by that Besides, Hazel and Frank were too close He didn’t want to burn them, or accidentally hit the piece of firewood that controlled Frank’s life

On Leo’s right, the suit of ararded Hazel and Frank, ere still lying unconscious

"A od," said Lion Head "These will do, if the others die" Its hollow face mask turned back to Leo "We do not need you, Leo Valdez"

"Oh, hey!" Leo tried for a winning smile "You always need Leo Valdez!"

He spread his hands and hoped he looked confident and useful, not desperate and terrified He wondered if it was too late to write TEAM LEO on his shirt

Sadly, the suits of armor were not as easily swayed as the Narcissus Fan Club had been

The one with the wolf-headed helmet snarled, "I have been in your mind, Leo I helped you start the war"

Leo’s smile crumbled He took a step back "That was you?"

Now he understood why those tourists had bothered hi’s voice sounded so familiar He’d heard it in his mind

"You made ?"

"I kno you think," said Wolf Head "I know your limits You are small and alone You need friends to protect you Without them, you are unable to withstand ain, but I can still kill you"

The armored dudes stepped forward The points of their swords hovered a few inches from Leo’s face

Leo’s fear suddenly er This eidolon in the wolf helmet had shamed hiered his friends and botched their quest

Leo glanced at the dormant spheres on the worktables He considered his tool belt He thought about the loft behind him--the area that looked like a sound booth Presto: Operation Junk Pile was born

"First: you don’t know ed for the stairs and bounded to the top The suits of armor were scary, but they were not fast As Leo suspected, the loft had doors on either side--folding ates The operators would’ve wanted protection in case their creations went haywire…like now Leo sla the locks

The suits of ar at them with their swords

"This is foolish," said Lion Head "You only delay your death"